China's Huawei Plans To Invest EUR100 Million In Romania Over Next Five Years

With security and spying concerns breathing down its neck in other parts of the world, Chinese telecom device maker Huawei plans to invest EUR100 million in Romania over the next five years.

Huawei has been operating businesses in Romania for over ten years and it currently has about 800 employees in this country. Its facilities include a global service center, which has 400 employees; a financial aid center, which has 265 employees; and an operations office, which has 135 employees.

By the end of 2013, Huawei will have 1,000 employees in Romania and the number will be further expanded to 1,200 by the end of 2014. In Romania, 70% of the employees are local hires, while the rest are mainly Chinese.

In addition to the hiring drive, Huawei has formed a partnership with Bucharest Politehnica University to promote local technical development.

The British government announced last week that it will investigate one of Huawei's cybersecurity centers operating in the United Kingdom. And U.S. General Michael Hayden, former head of the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency, said last week that he has concerns about the United States using Huawei as a backbone for its important telecommunications infrastructure.

Last year, the Australian government also barred Huawei from participating in the construction of the country's National Broadband Network because of security concerns.